A woman broke a five-year-old child’s collarbone by shoving her off a trampoline she did not want to share.
The girl broke her collarbone after being pushed from the edge of the raised trampoline onto the ground several feet below by Jamie-Lee Ferguson, 24.
Perth Sheriff Court was told that Ferguson was on the centre of the trampoline and the child was outside the safety net, on the outer edge, when she was forcibly shoved off.
Fiscal depute Kate Scarborough told the court: “The complainer was five years old at the time. There is footage which shows the child walking along the outside edge of the trampoline. There was a net up, and the accused was on the inside of it. Essentially, she pushed the child to her back through the netting, which caused her to fall off the trampoline to the floor, whereby she fractured her collarbone.
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“In terms of the injury, she was taken to accident and emergency and was found to have a closed fracture. I don’t believe much in the way of further treatment was required. She was given a sling to wear for a period of time.”
Ms Scarborough told the court that the matter was reported to police at a later stage and Ferguson, from Perth, was charged with assaulting the youngster on 15 October last year.
She admitted an alternative charge of culpable and reckless conduct at a property in the city. She admitted pushing the child on the back, causing her to fall to the ground, and severely injuring her.
Solicitor Steve Lafferty, defending, said: “She is mortified this has happened. They were in high spirits, there was a push, and she doesn’t really know why she did it, but she knows it was wrong. It was on to the grass. It wasn’t that high and she didn’t appreciate the effect it would have.”
The court was told the child complained about the pain the day after the incident and was taken to hospital then.
“She deeply regrets what happened. She has had her own difficulties, which is reflected in the social work report. It is clearly a serious matter. She very much scored an own goal. She has a very slender record and has displayed some insight. She said this was an accident, but she didn’t understand the nuances of what culpable and reckless behaviour is.”
Sheriff William Gilchrist said he would follow the recommendation of the background report and he placed Ferguson under social work supervision for six months.
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